According to local officials, the Mariners' Asian Champions League clash against Tianjin Teda will be a near 37,500 sell-out.

Dylan Macallister's inclusion at the expense of Nick Rizzo is the only change to a Mariners outfit that drew their opening ACL match with Pohang Steelers.  

"If we get a draw away from home we'd be happy, but we've come here expecting and thinking that we can win," said Mariners Football Manager Lawrie McKinna.
 
"We have to believe that we can come here and get a result - we think we can come away with a win, but realistically, if we came away with a draw, it's still a good result and we've done a good job.
 
"The Stadium will provide a great backdrop and great atmosphere here and we're looking forward to it." 
  
Tianjin Teda's line up will almost certainly feature a number of players familiar to Australian audiences, not least Tianjin striker Mark Bridge, who has relocated from Sydney to China for Tianjin's AFC Champions League Group H campaign, along with former Italian international midfielder Damiano Tommasi, who was an immortal at giant Serie A club AS Roma between 1996 and 2006.
 
Up front and in defence Tianjin are expected to showcase their remaining imports - Brazilian marksman Eber Luis and French defender Jean Phillipe Caillet, while the most noteworthy locals expected to play include Chinese national team players Yang Jun, Wang Xiao, Tan Wangsong, Hao Junmin, Wu Wei-an, Wang Xinxin and Cao Yang.
 
"We've got a copy of Tianjin's game from last Wednesday night and we'll obviously go through that, but they're going to be at home, in front of a big crowd and wanting to prove that they're a good team," said McKinna.
 
"We know that we're in for a very hard game and that we'll have to be at the top of our game to get a result.
 
"Coming here is a different world - a city of 11 million people and a world-class Stadium like this with a huge crowd, it's certainly going to be a bit different from the sunny Central Coast."